These Are the Best (and Worst) Cities for Single Moms

A new analysis looked at 150 cities.

Single parents are faced with being the primary caregiver and primary breadwinner—two roles often difficult to balance. As of 2014, 34 percent of children live in single-parent households. For single mothers, in particular, looking to move or relocate, WalletHub, a personal finance website, analyzed data from 150 cities to find out which cities in America were best for solo moms.

The winner? Scottsdale, Ariz., ranks highest for being kid-friendly as well as single mom-friendly. WalletHub used two primary rankings to determine each city's benefits. The 'Single Moms' Economic and Social Well-Being' Rank was based on 13 factors that ranged from financial stability, to median income, to home affordability, to babysitting costs. Each of these metrics was weighted to come up with a point score, and cities were then assigned a score out of 70. WalletHub also analyzed four factors to determine how child-friendly a city was, including access to parks and the ratio of childcare workers to children. Each factor was assigned a point value, and cities were given a score out of 30 to determine kid-friendliness. Overall, the cities each received a score of 100. Scottsdale received a total score of 65.94, and ranked second-highest for Single Moms' Economic and Social Well-Being, but ranked much lower for having a child-friendly environment.

Cities in Arizona consistently ranked high when looking at factors individually—Gilbert had the highest median annual income for single mothers, and three Arizona cities had some of the most employed single mothers with young children. The state's cities also had affordable homes and highly educated single mothers. Many Californian cities—including Oakland and Santa Ana—showed up at the bottom of individual categories, with minimal playgrounds, poor health insurance coverage, and high babysitting costs.

For the top 10 best cities for single moms, see below. You can find all 150 cities, ranked, at WalletHub.com.